The Stalin Affair: The Impossible Alliance That Won the War

British journalist, historian, and author of several best-selling narrative histories, Milton (Churchill’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare) authoritatively narrates this backstory of the Harriman Mission, a World War II alliance between the U.S., the UK, and the USSR, which came about with the assistance of wealthy railroad magnate Averell Harriman. Opening with a discussion of Hitler’s rise to power and the conquering of Europe, the book then relates Stalin’s insistence that Hitler wouldn’t attack him and his shock when his air force was obliterated. Meanwhile, though Churchill stood firmly against Hitler, he also maintained a hearty dislike of Stalin. After FDR enlisted the support of the charismatic Harriman, careful negotiations created a fragile but winning alliance between the three. Milton employs subtle vocal nuances as he captures the many players, including Harriman’s fashionable, 20-year-old daughter Kathy, who gathered insights at embassy parties; Churchill’s daughter-in-law Pamela, who became romantically involved with (and later married) Harriman; and a range of diplomats, including Archibald “Archie” Clark Kerr, Stafford Cripps, and Vyacheslav Molotov. Milton makes the tensions felt by Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin nearly palpable.